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MEC's website cookie policy

Last updated: September 1 2022

Scope and Purpose

This Website Cookie Policy explains how MEC Mountain Equipment Company Ltd. (herein referred to as “MEC” or “we”) uses cookies to store and retrieve information on your internet browser and the types of cookies used on our website www.mec.ca (the “Site”). It also explains your options with respect to these cookies.

To the extent that any information collected via cookies on our Site becomes personally identifiable, we will treat it as personal information in accordance with the MEC Privacy Policy.

Overview

What is a cookie?

A “cookie” is a small text or image file that is passed from a website to your computer and is automatically stored by your internet browser on your local hard drive (e.g. Safari, Google Chrome etc.) when you visit a website. Cookie files store information about your visit to the website, such as the time and date and pages viewed, along with other information such as your preferences or your device identification information.

Cookies are required to make purchases on our Site. Cookies can also serve a very useful purpose in allowing Site users to customize their preferences on our Site without the need to re-enter the same information on each subsequent visit. Cookies also allow us to better understand how our users access and navigate our Site so that we can design and build a better experience for you.

Cookies can be classified as either “First Party Cookies” or “Third Party Cookies”. First Party Cookies are placed on your internet browser by MEC. Third Party Cookies are placed on your device by another party when you visit our Site so that they can recognize your device when it visits the Site, as well as when it visits other websites. For example, MEC uses Google Analytics to better understand how our website is being used and a Google Analytics’ cookie would be placed on your internet browser. Google Analytics provides reports to MEC with aggregated information about user demographics and activities by Site visitors. MEC’s business partners including Meta (Facebook and Instagram), Pinterest, Google (and YouTube) also use Third Party Cookies so that they can advertise products and services to you when you are on our Site or on other non-MEC websites on the internet. MEC is not able to access Third Party Cookies, and third parties are unable to access data in the First Party Cookies we use on our website.

Policy

At MEC we respect your right to privacy. You can disable cookies by adjusting the settings on your browser. If you disable or refuse cookies, please note that some parts of the Site may not be accessible to you or may not function properly. You may also delete any First Party cookies that are already on your computer, however, please note that your experience on our Site and your ability to purchase products may be impacted. You can find more information about cookies, how to control your cookie preferences and how to delete cookies at www.aboutcookies.org

Overview of cookies on MEC’S website

On our Site, we use the following cookies that are either necessary for website functionality or are used to provide you with a better user experience and enhanced website performance:

Essential cookies

We place essential cookies on your internet browser to ensure the Site delivers you information and services securely and optimally. Since these cookies are necessary to deliver the Site, you must accept these necessary First Party Cookies to be able to make use of our Site.

Performance cookies

We use a number of tools that monitor visitor behaviour on our Site to help us improve our information and services, including the performance of the Site. These cookies provide us with information such as how many visitors use our Site, the pages that visitors frequent most often, and how visitors use our Site. They may be either First- or Third-Party Cookies. The information collected through these cookies is also reported to us in aggregate form to help us understand the effectiveness of our marketing campaigns.

Functional cookies

These cookies enable our Site to recognize you when you access our Site and provide you with enhanced functionality and personalization such as providing you with live chat functions, and to enhance your experience as you browse and make purchases. They may be set by us (First Party Cookies) or by third party providers (Third Party Cookies) whose services we have added to our pages.

Targeting cookies

These cookies may be set through our Site by our advertising partners (Third Party Cookies). They may be used by third party advertising partners to build a profile of your interests and to show you advertising messages that are more relevant to you and your interests. These cookies record your visit to our Site, the pages you have visited and the links you have followed. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising and a less personalized experience with content and products.

How to refuse the use of cookies

You can configure settings in your internet browser of choice to manage and delete cookies:

  • Manage cookie settings in Chrome and Chrome Android and Chrome iOS
  • Manage cookie settings in Safari and Safari iOS
  • Manage cookie settings in Firefox
  • Manage cookie settings in Internet Explorer
  • Manage cookie settings in Opera

If you choose to reject cookies, you may still use our Site, although your access to some functionality and areas of our Site may be restricted. Some Internet browsers include the ability to transmit “Do Not Track” signals. Our Site does not currently process or respond to Do Not Track signals.

Changes to this cookie policy

We may update this Website Cookie Policy to reflect changes to our information practices and we will post any changes to this page. Your continued use of our Site following the posting of changes to this Website Cookie Policy will mean that you accept and agree to the changes to the Website Cookie Policy. We encourage you to periodically review our Website Cookie Policy for the latest information on our privacy practices and to contact us if you have any questions or concerns.

Contact us

MEC’s Privacy Officer (privacy@mec.ca) is responsible for receiving your privacy-related questions. If you have any questions or concerns about this Website Cookie Policy generally, or specific cookies that are used on the Site, please contact the MEC Privacy Officer using the contact information below:

Mountain Equipment Company – Privacy Officer

Suite 101 – 887 Great Northern Way Vancouver, BC V5T 4T5 Canada Tel: (604) 707-3300 Email: privacy@mec.ca